


Shooting Stars and Sixers

by certified_star



Category: Gravity Falls
Genre: Better with Sweaters!, Hurt/Comfort, Post-Weirdmageddon, Team Weird
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-03
Updated: 2016-10-03
Packaged: 2018-08-19 10:03:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,563
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8201054
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/certified_star/pseuds/certified_star
Summary: Honestly, Ford would have been better of fighting a five-headed, fire-breathing demon hybrid then handling the problems of a pre-teen girl. And yet here he was.





	

Mabel scrunched up her nose, like she had smelled something really bad- but Dipper had finally cleaned up the laundry pile at the foot of his bed, so that couldn't be it.

No, it was something else.

After a whole afternoon of procrastinating, Mabel had decided to start cleaning out her side of the attic (Dipper had left for a break, but that was twenty minutes ago and it didn't seem like he was coming back anytime soon). In only half an hour, her posters were off the wall, her stuffed animals were bundled together in a blanket so they wouldn't get hurt during the trip and all of her sweaters were stuffed into her suitcases. Except for one.

The pink shooting star sweater was laid out on her bed in front of her. She stared at it, her hands on her hips, squinting and frowning as if looking for something she hadn't seen yet.

After a while, she let her arms drop and looked away, letting out a sigh.

He had ruined it. He had ruined her favorite sweater for her. Now, every time she looked at it, it reminded her of him. Of the Shooting Star flashing in his eye, of her brush with death. She could almost feel his hand around her again, trapping her and her brother, hear him counting down...

Mabel shivered, trying to rid herself of the memory as she plopped back down on her bed. Absentmindedly she grasped the sleeve of the pink sweater, rubbing the soft material between her fingers. She pulled the clothing onto her lap, looking wistfully at the bright colors which once could always cheer her up but now just seemed to taunt her.

Suddenly there was a knock on the door, and she jumped up, quickly putting away the sweater.

"C-come in" Her voice wavered, but she hoped it had gone unnoticed by whoever was on the other side of the door.

The door opened and her Grunkle Ford stepped inside. He was wearing his usual red turtleneck, though he was missing his trenchcoat, and in his hands he held one opened can of Pitt cola and one still closed.

He just stood there awkwardly for a moment, as if taking in the scene before him. Then he cleared his throat.

"I uh, Stanley was handing out beverages and I, uh, I figured you'd like one as well" He waited for her to nod before slowly walking towards her. As he handed her the soda, she gave him a thankful smile, but he could see it wasn't a genuine one.

After a second of deliberation, he sat next to her on the bed. "Is something... Wrong, maybe?"

Mabel looked up abruptly at that. "Oh no, no, it's nothing, Grunkle Ford, really, it's just..."

She fell silent as Ford looked beside her to the source of his niece's distress. He took the woolen material of the sweater in his hand before looking up to meet her eyes again. The girl looked away, as if she had been caught doing something she shouldn't.

"Mabel?", Ford began confusedly, "why-"

He didn't finish his sentence, suddenly noticing the way she bit her lip and quivered, even though the temperature in the attic was reasonably warm.

"Mabel?", he repeated.

A tear fell down her cheek onto her skirt and she quickly wiped her eyes, not wanting him to see her cry. Why was she crying, anyways? She shouldn't be crying over a stupid sweater, but the tears wouldn't stop coming and her breath hitched and even her disassociated Grunkle Ford must know what was going on with her by now.

Ford stared at his niece in shock. Why was she crying suddenly? Did he say something wrong? Dipper never cried, he didn't have the slightest idea what to do!

He took a deep breath, remembering what his mother used to do when he or Stanley got sad. He put away the sweater and clumsily threw an arm around Mabel's tiny form, pulling her closer. She didn't hesitate at the affection and instead leaned into the hug, cuddling into his side. He rubbed her arm in the hope it'd soothe her.

"There, there", he tried, though he wasn't sure if Mabel was even listening to him. It was weird for him to see her so sad. It reminded him of when his brother used to cry sometimes when they were younger. He didn't know what to do about it then, he didn't know what to do about it now; all he knew was that he didn't like it.  

"Look, I'm- I'm sorry for whatever made you sad, pumpkin" He bit his lip at the nickname. Was he even allowed to call her that?

Mabel shook her head, trying to slow her breathing again, "Don't worry, Grunkle Ford, it's not your fault"

Ford looked down at her, trying to figure out a way not to seem intrusive as he asked this. "Do you- Do you want to talk about it?"

Mabel thought about it. Ford was probably the least qualified person to do this with. She had known him for less than a month and he lacked even a basic understanding of human emotions. She sat back up, feeling his arm slip from her shoulder.

"Okay"

It was quiet again for some time, and Ford began to question if she had reconsidered her decision when he heard her.

"He ruined it"

He blinked, confused. "Pardon me?"

"He ruined it", she repeated louder. "He ruined my favorite sweater for me" Mabel's voice broke a little on the last two words. She took a deep breath and said: "I'm never wearing it again"

Ford looked down at his lap, searching his mind for any possible reaction. Honestly, he thought, he would've been better off fighting a five-headed, fire-breathing demon hybrid then handling the problems of a pre-teen girl. And yet here he was.

He sucked in a breath.

"Well, sweetheart... I know exactly how you feel"

Mabel looked up, hearing the honest tone in his voice. "You do?", she asked, with a mixture of surprise and hope.

Ford nodded. "Of course I do. Look at it this way: Bill took the childhood nickname my brother had given me purely out of love, and he turned it into something I can now only associate with him and what he did" He looked up to the ceiling and sighed, memories going as fast as they were coming. "It might not be the exact same circumstance, but the point is that... In time, I will get over it"

"How?", Mabel sniffled, sounding oddly sceptic as she did so.

Ford thought for a moment. "Well... With the help of my family"

She tilted her head, looking puzzled. "Huh?"

Ford smiled at the girl, thinking of his plans of asking Stanley to sail the Arctic with him.

"Yeah. After a while, you start forgetting about what you've been through, and the good memories will resurface. Bill- He's gone, isn't he? And he won't hurt you, or your brother, or your friends anymore. That is a promise" Mabel looked at the wall opposite them as she listened. "Look, I might not have known you for that long yet, but I do know that you are strong enough to get past this. Just do what you always do; Focus on the present, and don't let your past get in your way. Focus on the good things in your life"

It was still for a minute as Mabel let these words sink in. Focus on the good things? She used to be so good at that. Now she needed someone to remind her about it.

That didn't mean it wasn't working though. Because as she sat there and thought about her brother's laugh and her Grunkle Stan's voice, Candy's blush and Grenda's hugs, Wendy's smile and Soos' high-fives, she couldn't help the smile slowly growing on her lips. Grunkle Ford was right. Shooting Stars and favorite sweaters would come and go, but she was way more than that! She was Mabel Pines, and she was here to stay! Well, not literally _here_ , because she was supposed to be back in Piedmont by tomorrow- The point was, she didn't need the sweater.

Ford let out a relieved breath when he saw that familiar sweet smile again. "See, there we go, that's the Mabel Pines I know!" They chuckled together as Mabel dried her eyes.

Ford, hoping everything was okay again, stood up and walked back to the still open door. He hesitated at the threshold, mentally debating if he should say something, before calling over his shoulder: "I'll see you at the party, my dear girl" And he rounded the corner and disappeared out of her sight.

Mabel grinned and mentally added "Grunkle Ford's awkwardness" to the list of things that made her happy. She turned her gaze to the pink sweater, it's colors seeming duller than they had before.

 

* * *

 

 

Mabel decided to wear the sweater one last time, to the party, as a sort of homage to her time in Gravity Falls. But in the bus, when she was half-asleep on Dipper's shoulder, she was already thinking up of new designs. Who knew what her next favorite sweater was gonna be? Maybe a flower, or a butterfly, or a puppy or a kitten or a funny text or...

**Author's Note:**

> What do you think Mabel's new favorite sweater is gonna be? Also, leave reviews if you want to, I'd love to know what others think of it!


End file.
